New document/tab building software needed

[ReproElectroProspero]

We recently switched away from being a Xerox shop with FreeFlow RIP towards being a Ricoh shop with Fiery RIP, and as such need to migrate away from using Freeflow MakeReady as our document building software.
We had thousands of books built and saved as RDO files, though the vast majority were just books with multiple paper stocks and programmed exception pages.

We tried using RSA ReadyPrint but their promise of RDO conversion leaves a lot to be desired. It doesn't convert tabs correctly, so any document with tabs needs to be rebuilt manually, negating any benefit of the conversion software for us.

We then looked into Fiery JobMaster, which worked okay during the demo, but they want $2,000 a year minimum. And the biggest annoyance to me is that it seems tied to each computer, and not the RIP. So my operators have to go stand at the rip to use it, unless I buy additional licenses so they can use it at their desks with their remote CommandWorkstation instance.

I'm curious what other options exist that I should be looking into. The vast majority of our books can just be simple PDFs, all we're really doing is adding tabs and colored exception pages. I just want to make it easier on my operators so they don't have to manually program exception pages every time they send a job to the rip. We're currently using MakeReady to build our books/tabs...then exporting to a PDF and programming each 9x11 exception page manually. It's a real pain in the butt. It was a lot nicer when we built them in MakeReady and used ProductionPrint to send the job to our Xerox machines with all ticketing information. Manually programming the ticketing when you have 50+ exception pages is a nightmare.

Thanks for any insight! I'm thinking I should just buy JobMaster and get them used to a new process...but before I do I want to ensure I check all my options.

 

[bcr]

Total flow prep is an option for tabs seeing as you are with Ricoh but I am deeply dissatisfied with their ongoing product support and development. I've been using it since the beginning of 2021 and I don't think they've introduced a single new feature nor solved any of the frustrating shortcomings in that time.

Probably you should talk to EFI and ask them what they can offer in terms of automating the conversion of those books. They might be able to do something with Fiery Job Flow and Job master to make it more of a hands off / server side conversion process.

In general terms I would advocate using bookmarks in pdfs to then automate conversion of bookmarks into tabs.

If you know what you are doing with PDFs and various other tools you can also do a lot to speed up the creation of and editing of bookmarks in pdfs to contain the correct text etc before sending it to any print relafed software

 

[jwheeler]

Following for the same request. We are considering switching from KM to Ricoh. We have KM controllers on all of our devices and we print probably 40-50 different titles with anywhere from 5 to 25 divider tabs per binder. Making tabs in the Konica controller is so easy. Plus, we regularly get replacement artwork for sections of the training manuals or even the entire manual updated. You can easily save and apply the tab settings to the new PDF. This doesn't seem possible in Fiery.

To @bcr 's point, Fiery's compose/job master does offer the option to automatically recognize chapters in a PDF and can automatically make tabs. However, the majority of the books we receive from customers.

 

[bcr]

Following for the same request. We are considering switching from KM to Ricoh. We have KM controllers on all of our devices and we print probably 40-50 different titles with anywhere from 5 to 25 divider tabs per binder. Making tabs in the Konica controller is so easy. Plus, we regularly get replacement artwork for sections of the training manuals or even the entire manual updated. You can easily save and apply the tab settings to the new PDF. This doesn't seem possible in Fiery.

To @bcr 's point, Fiery's compose/job master does offer the option to automatically recognize chapters in a PDF and can automatically make tabs. However, the majority of the books we receive from customers.

So I think in tf prep you can save the tab settings and carry across to an updated or different document, it's just not something I've ever done as it's not my workflow.

It's actually a major source of frustration with it for me as tf prep has presets and hot folder functionality plus v good tab automation features. But you can't combine the use of the tab automation features with a preset or a hot folder as it just saves the exact same tabs and text rather than applying the automation process.

E.g. you can build a new job from a pdf and have it convert the bookmarks into tabs. Or you can create a new job from a series of different documents and create the tabs from the document filenames... But you can't then use any presets fffff

 

[bcr]

Following for the same request. We are considering switching from KM to Ricoh. We have KM controllers on all of our devices and we print probably 40-50 different titles with anywhere from 5 to 25 divider tabs per binder. Making tabs in the Konica controller is so easy. Plus, we regularly get replacement artwork for sections of the training manuals or even the entire manual updated. You can easily save and apply the tab settings to the new PDF. This doesn't seem possible in Fiery.

To @bcr 's point, Fiery's compose/job master does offer the option to automatically recognize chapters in a PDF and can automatically make tabs. However, the majority of the books we receive from customers.

What I was getting at with contacting efi was whether they can create a workflow to convert the docs from the Xerox format and add the tabs..

I sometimes use jobmaster myself and someone from efi did once say if I had job flow it would be possible to have a complete hot folder automation based around job master converting tabs. I would then review the file in job master before printing.

 

[PrintHusky]

@ReproElectroProspero feel free to contact me privately/message if you want to try a software that can add tabs/inserts/exceptions to any document and can print to any device, as long as you have a windows printer driver. Regardless of manufacturer of printer/device.
Building tabs from document filenames, or custom tabs at chosen spots with custom text is possible in flexible ways. It can be done manually in steps or with macro automation. You can decide how the tab layout (geometry) is. If you build a macro that inserts tabs by filename, you can automate such a task in a very efficient way.
The same flexibility exists for inserting colored pages. You can insert them at custom spots that you pick or via automation, if it can be defined what the insertion logic is, in front of groups by filename or by section starts that you define. Another example, turning existing bookmarks in the PDF to section starts and inserting a tab with the bookmark name - no problem.
Anything a professional digital print service provider would want to do can be done. The software is constantly improved based on user feedback.
Disclaimer: I am the lead developer. It is commercial software for professional users.

 

[ReproElectroProspero]

@ReproElectroProspero feel free to contact me privately/message if you want to try a software that can add tabs/inserts/exceptions to any document and can print to any device, as long as you have a windows printer driver. Regardless of manufacturer of printer/device.
Building tabs from document filenames, or custom tabs at chosen spots with custom text is possible in flexible ways. It can be done manually in steps or with macro automation. You can decide how the tab layout (geometry) is. If you build a macro that inserts tabs by filename, you can automate such a task in a very efficient way.
The same flexibility exists for inserting colored pages. You can insert them at custom spots that you pick or via automation, if it can be defined what the insertion logic is, in front of groups by filename or by section starts that you define. Another example, turning existing bookmarks in the PDF to section starts and inserting a tab with the bookmark name - no problem.
Anything a professional digital print service provider would want to do can be done. The software is constantly improved based on user feedback.
Disclaimer: I am the lead developer. It is commercial software for professional users.

That does sound amazing, but we are primarily a Mac shop :'(

 

[PrintHusky]

That does sound amazing, but we are primarily a Mac shop :'(

Understood. The software is installed Windows Desktop software. Old school. No Web-App. It will not run natively on a Mac.
In order to run on a Mac it would need a virtualization platform like Parallels or VirtualBox or similar to install a Windows O/S.
If that sounds reasonable feel free to reach out.

 

[G5MacMan]

In order to run on a Mac it would need a virtualization platform like Parallels or VirtualBox or similar to install a Windows O/S.

or Save Money, Try CrossOver Free Before You Buy.

 

[PrintHusky]

That does sound amazing, but we are primarily a Mac shop :'(

Mac's are certainly great and polished for Graphics & Artwork.
But what if there was a windows only software that could reduce daily preflight and job setup work by 20%, or turning an 8 hr 'hard' workday with repetitive/cumbersome tasks into more comfortable 6 hrs 'smart' workday with efficient workflows and automation ?
What if the daily, weekly, monthly workload savings would keep adding up and leave more time for better customer service, better quality products, or simply stress free day ?

At what point would an additional PC or Mac virtualization be worthwhile ?
That's the question Management of a company should consider.